Update on safeguard measures for EU Emissions Trading System due to the UK's withdrawal from the European Union

13/02/2018

Following the endorsement by the Climate Change Committee in December 2017 and the non-objection adopted by the European Parliament and the Council, the Commission formally adopted on 12 February the amendment to the EU ETS Registry Regulation to implement safeguard measures to protect the environmental integrity of the EU ETS when Union law ceases to apply in the United Kingdom due to its withdrawal from the European Union.

The revised Regulation provides for marking and restricting the use of allowances issued by the United Kingdom as of 1 January 2018, unless Union law would not cease to apply in the United Kingdom by 30 April 2019 or it is sufficiently ensured that the surrender of allowances takes place in a legally enforceable manner by no later than 15 March 2019.

Since the United Kingdom had informed the Committee of the adoption of a law on 27 December 2017 by which the compliance deadline for 2018 emissions has been advanced to 15 March 2019, allowances issued by the United Kingdom for the calendar year 2018 are however not marked and are accepted for surrender.

The 2018 UK auction calendar has been published on the website of the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE).